Bouton

Bouton is a French noun with several related meanings, spanning objects, biology, and everyday usage. In French, the word designates a button, a knob or protruding part, or a bud. The term also colloquially denotes a pimple. In English-language contexts, bouton appears mainly in borrowed or specialized terms and in reference to its French senses.

In clothing and textiles, a button is a small round or disk-shaped fastener sewn onto fabric and passed through a buttonhole to join garments or accessories. Buttons vary in material (plastic, metal, shell, wood), size, and attachment method, including four-hole, two-hole, and shank designs, and they may be decorative as well as functional.

In electronics and user interfaces, a button is a control that is pressed to activate an action. Buttons can be momentary or toggle a state, and they provide tactile or visual feedback. They appear on devices, remotes, keyboards, and many consumer electronics, often distinguishing physical buttons from on-screen controls.

In botany and mycology, bouton refers to a flower bud or unopened shoot. In English, the term “button mushroom” describes the immature form of the common edible mushroom, Agaricus bisporus.

The word’s usage is influenced by context, with French origins shaping its meanings as a detachable fastener, a control element, or a plant bud, and with occasional reference to acne in colloquial French.